Inside, Everyone's Hiding
by Demelza
Summary: Gusler’s annoyed at Bosco and Faith’s continuous bickering, so he decides it’s time they sorted it out. (Chapter Two)
1. Default Chapter

**Title: **Inside, Everybody's Hiding  
**Authors:** Demelza and X_tremeroswellian  
**Emails:** _demelza81@yahoo.co.nz_ and _X_tremeroswellian@yahoo.com  
_**Disclaimer:** The characters don't belong to us. They belong to Edward Allen Bernero and John Wells and a bunch of other people that we've never met before. Please don't sue. The character of Josie belongs to Demelza. Song is 'Fumbling Towards Ecstacy by Sarah McLachlan.  
**Rating:** PG-13, for Angst and a few cuss words.  
**Spoilers:** 'Falling' and some other 3rd season episodes.   
**Category:** Bosco and Faith angst.  
**A/N (Dem):** Picks up where 'Falling' left off, kinda...in this story, Fred didn't come home...just yet. Ooh yeah, this'd be the first TW story where I do not use the F-word. (by F-word I mean F***, not Fred...for today)

  
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"I was so afraid, Faith, I couldn't move…" Bosco cried, "I couldn't do anything." His teary eyes met Faith's.

She felt her stomach knot, and a weird feeling go through her chest. She was afraid, afraid for him, afraid because she had never asked him if *he* was okay, or if he wanted to talk about what had happened. She had only been worried about her, her and her cancer...her and her inability to 'trust' anyone.

"I couldn't move..." He sobbed, leaning forward and crying into his hands when Faith moved on the couch and took him in her arms.

"It's okay, Boz..." Faith assured him, resting her head against his and rubbing his back. "It's going to be okay."

They must have sat like that for a long time, Faith holding him in her arms, just letting him cry it all out. She sat with her eyes closed, just thankful that he had come to her.

Why wasn't I there for you, Boz? She asked herself, hating the fact she hadn't seen the signs that something was wrong. But then she mentally kicked herself, she *had* seen the signs, there was just so much bitterness between them because of the lies about her cancer that they had hardly talked to each other since she finally told him. It was any wonder he didn't come to her, a friend he should have been able to.

"I'm sorry." Bosco muttered after twenty minutes or so. He pulled away, wiping the tears from his face, sniffing. "Man, I must look like shit."

Faith chuckled, quickly apologising. "No, you're fine."

There was a quirk at the corner of his lips, but no smile. "I've missed this you know." He said, his voice barely audible.

"What?" Faith asked back, looking at him to try figure out what he meant.

"Being able to just talk. All that shit, these past few months...I'm sorry, Faith."

"Don't be, Bosco. I'm as much to blame as you."

"I know. But, I...I've been acting like a complete ass."

Faith bit her lower lip in an attempt not to laugh at her partner. "That's no different than usual, Boz." She replied, a slight chuckle coming through as she spoke.

He smiled, the first she'd seen all day. "I'm just, I'm sorry anyway, Faith."

"Me too." She replied.

"I should go." Bosco said after a silent moment.

"You don't have to."

He met her gaze, nodding. "Yeah, I do. I promised to go see Ma tonight after work."

"Oh okay." Faith replied.

They both stood up, Bosco first then Faith, before walking over to the door. Faith opened the door, but Bosco didn't leave just yet, instead he turned to her once more. "Thank you." He told her.

Faith smiled, "Anytime, I'm always here for you, you know that." She promised.

"Yeah. I know." Bosco nodded, sniffing again as he tried not to have a repeat performance of crying in her arms. "Well, goodnight."

"Yeah, night. See you at work tomorrow...I mean next week." She smiled, shaking her head at herself for forgetting.

Bosco chuckled slightly. He went to move, walk down the hallway out of Faith's apartment building, but he just stood there. Unable and unwilling to go.

"You okay Bosco?" Faith asked, noting the confused and shaken look on his face. He swallowed, shaking his head. She tilted her head to the side a moment, and took him in her arms again, giving him a hug. "It'll be all right."

"I know." He cried, sobbing. "I'm just so scared." He put his arms tight around her, not wanting her to ever let him go. He didn't want to go home, didn't want to go back to his dark apartment alone.

All the fear has left me now  
I'm not frightened anymore

Faith could feel every sob he wept. Each one a different strength. After a while though, he just stopped, letting go of her and moving away. "I'm sorry." He said again, shaking his head.

It's my heart that pounds beneath my flesh  
It's my mouth that pushes out this breath

"Don't be, it's okay to cry." She told him, cupping her hands behind his head before tilting his head forward and placing a kiss against his temple.

And if I shed a tear I won't cage it  
I won't fear love

Bosco closed his eyes at the touch of her lips against his head. But when she pulled away, he opened them, looking right at her blue eyes. He swallowed hard, unable to say anything else.

And if I feel a rage I won't deny it  
I won't fear love  
Companion to our demons   
They will dance  
And we will play

"Bosco..." Faith said, her voice a mere whisper. She didn't know what she was doing, or thinking, but she leaned her head closer to his, looking from his eyes to his lips, then back to his eyes again. And then, without another breath or even a second thought, she tenderly pressed her lips to his. The thought that he'd push her away instantly flashed in her mind, but when he kissed her back, his kiss just as equally tender, she fell further into his arms and pulled his warm body closer to her, wrapping her arms around him.

With chairs, candles and cloth  
Making darkness in the day  
It will be easy to look in or out  
Upstream or down without a thought

The kiss felt like it lasted for more than a few minutes when in fact it was only a few seconds. They pulled apart, both opening their eyes at the same time and meeting the other's gaze. 

And if I shed a tear  
I won't cage it  
I won't fear love  
And if I feel a rage, I won't deny it

"Oh god, I'm so sorry..." Faith said, quickly pulling away. She shook her head, not wanting to meet his gaze, even once.

"Faith..."

She shook her head. "I think, it'd be best..." she looked up at him finally, seeing a slightly more confused look on his face than he had before. "…if you, if you just left. I didn't, what happened...it was a mistake."

Bosco nodded, "I know. Just, mixed emotions..." he told her, swallowing. He didn't say goodbye, didn't apologise, he just gave her a look to tell her he wasn't sorry for what had just happened between them, and then left.

Faith closed the door behind him, sighing heavily as she leaned against the back of it. "Aw shit..." she shook her head, lightly banging her head against the door behind her, letting out a low groan of frustration.

She slid down to the ground, her arms around her, wondering what in hell she had just done. She'd kissed him. Kissed Bosco. She was married for goodness sakes, she was happily married to Fred. His name burned in her head and she felt guilt surge up through her, a funny knotting feeling in her stomach and a lump rising up in her throat. She was sitting there only a few more moments when she went running through to the bathroom and threw up in the toilet.

"Mommy?" A voice asked behind her after a few minutes.

Faith wiped her mouth, her hands shaking as she turned to see Emily standing there. "I'm okay, sweetie."

"Why are you being sick?" Emily asked, walking into the bathroom.

"I...I'm worried about my test results, that's all Em." Faith told her daughter in an assuring tone.

"Do you need anything?"

"I'll be fine." Faith smiled, standing up. "Really."

Emily gave her a worried look, but accepted what she said by walking back out of the bathroom.

Faith let out a long breath, and stood in front of the mirror. Her reflection was anything but what she'd expected. Her complexion had paled and sweat covered her face. Then came the rush of guilt all over again as memories of the sweet sensation from kissing Bosco came over her. Her lips tingled slightly and she turned around, hating seeing herself. She brought her hand up to touch her lips with the tip of her fingers, closing her eyes and uncontrollably reliving every part of the kiss again.

Faith looked into Bosco's blue eyes, her heart surging with strong beats in her chest. He breathed out low and slow, and she could feel the warmth of his breath brush against her face. A feeling came over her, and without another breath, or even a second thought, she moved her face nearer to his and tenderly pressed her lips to his. As the gentleness and warmth in kissing him settled in, the thought that he'd push her away flashed in her mind. But as he pressed his lips firmer against hers and kissed her back with an equally tender embrace she could feel herself fall, just fall into his embrace. She pulled his body closer to her, feeling the warmth of being so close to him.

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"I'm sorry," he said again, shaking his head. She must think I'm such a loser now.

"Don't be. It's okay to cry," Faith whispered. She gripped his head in her hands and brushed a light kiss against his temple. 

He closed his eyes at the feel of her lips, and when she pulled away, he opened them again. He found himself staring right into her blue eyes. He swallowed hard, unable to speak. He'd never realized how deep of blue her eyes were. 

"Bosco." There was a slight catch in her voice as she leaned her face closer to his, staring into his eyes. Then her gaze dropped to his lips, then moved to his eyes again. 

The next thing he knew, she was pressing her lips against his gently. His eyes drifted shut as he returned the slight pressure. She moved closer to him, her arms winding around him.

And then it was over. He wasn't sure if he pulled away, or if she did, or if they both had, and he was even less sure it mattered at all as they stood there staring at each other. 

"Oh, God...I'm so sorry," she said quickly, her face paling slightly. She shook her head and wouldn't look at him again. 

"Faith..." He didn't even know what to say. She had kissed him...should he apologize to her? He wasn't sure about a lot of things, but he was sure he wasn't sorry. 

Faith shook her head again. "I think it'd be best..." She looked up at him finally, her eyes full of confusion. "...if you...if you just left. I didn't, what happened...it was a mistake." 

Bosco nodded. "I know. Just, mixed emotions," he said, swallowing hard. That was it. He'd been upset, she was upset, it just happened. It didn't mean anything. He looked at her for another moment, unable to say anything else. Then he turned and started down the hallway.

He heard her close the door behind him and he stopped walking. He dropped his shoulders and leaned his head back against the wall. 

What the hell had just happened?

  
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Bosco sat on his couch and tried to pay attention to whatever movie that was playing on Animal Planet. After a few minutes, he gave up and shut off the television.

He closed his eyes, remembering the feel of Faith's lips against his. He swallowed hard. What had been through her head? Or his, for that matter? Why hadn't he pulled away immediately?

Because you liked it, the voice in his mind answered for him.

It's Faith. She's my partner, my best friend. I don't think of her like that. 

Yeah, right.

I don't. 

Bosco sat up abruptly, opening his eyes. He hadn't been with a woman since September 10th. He was just frustrated. That's all. 

Yeah, you just keep telling yourself that, Bosco. The voice laughed at him.

"Shut the hell up," he muttered, rising to his feet. "Man, I'm outta here." He grabbed the keys to his Mustang and headed for the door. 

He needed to get wasted.  
  


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Fred had come back an hour or so later. Faith didn't ask him where he'd been, or tell him Bosco had dropped by. They all sat at the table, them and their kids. Our kids, she thought, looking at Emily and Charlie in turn for minutes at a time. She watched them eat, watched them smile and laugh as they talked about the cartoon they had watched earlier that afternoon. A smile appeared on her face, and she turned to look at Fred.

A deep frown creased his brow as he looked back at her. Did he know, she asked inside. Was that why he hadn't come home? Had he walked along the hallway leading to their apartment and found her and Bosco sharing the kiss they had?

His frown faded for a moment as he gave her a small smile and Faith let out a low breath, realising it had been her own paranoia. What had happened was a mistake, a mix of emotions, like Bosco said. 

But he wasn't the one who kissed her first. No, she had been the one to kiss *him*, and for the fact he had kissed her back...well, she couldn't give an explanation for why he had, it could have just been a reaction. No, if it was a reaction, she thought, he wouldn't have kissed back, he would have broken it off before it went as far as it did. But if that were true, so could have she.

"Faith...Faith?" Fred's voice broke into her thoughts.

Faith blinked twice, "What?" She asked, slightly shaking her head.

"I said I was sorry."

"You did?" She said back, a frown of confusion etching over her face.

Fred let out a sigh. "Yes."

Instantly Faith looked in the direction Emily and Charlie had been seated earlier. "Where are the kids?" She asked.

"They just went off to brush their teeth."

"Oh." Faith acknowledged, nodding. "Sorry, I was lost in thought."

Fred looked back at her with a concerned look, "Are you feeling okay? Emily said you threw up before."

"Yeah. I'm fine. It finally hit me that I might not have done so great on the test, that's all." She said, clearing her throat a little.

He slowly nodded. "Maybe you should get to bed, I'll clean up. I'll be through there soon."

Faith nodded. "Okay." But she didn't move, she just sat in the chair at the table as Fred stood up and gathered the dishes and took them through to the kitchen. "What did I do?" She asked, her voice inaudible as she let out a low groan and rose to her feet, slowly heading down the hall to their bedroom.

  
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Bosco was on his second shot of bourbon when someone sat down next to him at the bar. 

"Hi, Bosco." 

Bosco turned to see Gusler sitting beside him. He just nodded an acknowledgement to the rookie officer and stared down at his drink. 

"Me and a couple other guys from the department are over there. Wanna join us?" Gusler asked, nodding toward a table in the corner. 

He shook his head. He wasn't really in the mood for company. He drank down the bourbon and ordered another. 

"Can I get a beer?" Gusler asked the bartender. 

"Sure thing, Kid." 

Bosco ventured a glance at the younger officer. His eyes were already red-rimmed and he could smell the alcohol on him. Gusler had been there awhile. 

"I can't believe Officer Yokas took the sergeant's exam," Gusler said, shaking his head as he gulped down a drink of his beer. 

He grunted and quickly downed his bourbon in one drink. 

"Guess that means she's leaving us." The kid sounded sad. 

He glanced at Gusler sideways briefly but remained silent, his mind flashing back to the moment right before Faith had kissed him. Had he known, been aware of what she'd been about to do? He pictured her face, how her gaze had been so intense as she looked into his eyes. Then it had dropped to his lips before her eyes met his again. He'd kissed plenty of women before, been kissed by plenty of women before...he always knew right before it happened. Always. 

Had he realized Faith was going to kiss him? He couldn't have. If he had known, he would have backed away, right? 

Are you sure? 

Of course I am...it's Faith. My best friend-slash-partner-slash-very married Faith. 

"I like her. She's real nice." 

He blinked, his thoughts interrupted by Gusler's voice. 

"She's a good cop." 

Bosco nodded his agreement, his thoughts drifting off again. What was going on with her? he wondered. She'd seemed a bit upset when he'd shown up on her doorstep. Was it like he'd said? Just mixed emotions? Was that it? They'd both been upset. He'd been confused and hurting and she was the only person who gave a damn about him.

He heard Gusler talking, but couldn't force himself to pay attention. 

Why did she kiss me? he wondered. 

It was wrong. They both knew that. 

But still.

Again, he recalled the feel of her lips against his, of her arms wrapping around her waist. It had felt...good. It had felt...right. 

Damn it, he cursed himself. 

"Hey, Boscorelli." A hand clapped down on his shoulder. 

Startled, he looked up to see a couple guys from the precinct grinning at him. 

"Heard you've been relieved of duty for awhile," one of them remarked. 

Bosco grimaced but didn't give them the satisfaction of a reply. He wasn't in the mood. 

"What'd you do this time? Bang some chick in the front of your RMP?" the other guy asked, laughing. 

"Nah, he already did that, remember?" 

Bosco stood. "Grow up," he muttered as he threw some money down on the bar to cover his drinks. He turned and walked out the door without another word.   
  


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The next day

Faith stood in front of her locker the next day just before three. She'd arrive a quarter of an hour ago, but she still wasn't dressed yet. She had just sat on the bench in front of the lockers and looked down at her hands. She didn't know what to do to get the thoughts out of her head. She lay awake all night long, just thinking over and over again about the events of the day past. She swallowed hard, remembering the few dreams she had had during the time she was able to get any sleep. 

They started out as dreams of her and Fred laughing together on the beach, watching the kids build castles in the sand, but then everything changed. Fred was screaming at her to stop lying to him. Stormy weather had picked up, and the kids...she couldn't find them anywhere. She woke up, her heart pounding heavily in her chest, waves of fear rippling over her as she lay there in the bed, staring up at the ceiling trying to make sense of the dreams. They were the same, each one of them, and she couldn't change any part of them, no matter how many times she cried out to the sky—the wind howling about her, leaving her barely able to catch her breath—she couldn't change what was happening.

Suddenly, the doors to the locker room opened and she looked up, an instant hope to see Bosco walking in floating over her. It faded as she saw that it was only Gusler. She smiled up at the young Officer and asked how his night was.

"I got completely trashed at a bar with Boscorelli." He replied coolly, a tone of excitement in his voice as he waltzed over to his locker and opened it.

"Bosco? Really?" Faith asked, trying not to sound too interested, but then not wanting to sound disinterested, either.

"Yeah. Down at Hagarty's, I didn't think he drunk much though, well, nowhere near as much as me. Couple other guys were there, too. I stuck with Boscorelli, though, guy's going through a tough time, thought he might like a friend to hang with."

"Oh."

"Yeah." Gusler cleared his throat, removing his vest from his locker. "You know what was weird, though? He didn't say a word, nothing, not even a single insult."

Faith nodded, standing up and opening her own locker. "Doesn't sound like Boz."

"Nah. The other guys were giving him shit though, 'bout his temporary suspension. Actually, he didn't even react to that, just told them to grow up and left."

"Left?"

"Yeah. I was pretty trashed by then, so I don't know what time. He came in well after me and the other guys had already got started, but it couldn't have been that much later. Anyways, he just left. Guess he wasn't in the drinking mood."

"Guess not." Faith replied. She didn't say anything else as she changed into her full dress uniform. Gusler was ready before her and already headed to roll call by the time she finally left the locker room.

She saw Sully only just arriving as she followed the corridor down to roll call. The older officer looked like he wanted to talk, but after what he'd told her at shift end the night before having him be all cynical on her was the last thing she needed or wanted to hear this afternoon.

Roll call passed slowly and Faith wondered if the whole day would be like that. Slow and drawn out to make her even more desperate to just find a dark room and crawl up and hide. Because that's how she felt inside, like she couldn't deal with the world. Hiding seemed like the best option, what with how confused she was feeling inside.

She used ever part of her will power to keep the memories of the night before at bay. It was a mistake, and no matter the inner searching she had done, she couldn't figure out for the life of her why she had done it. Why she'd pressed her lips to his. A memory flashed in her mind, her heart pounded and all she could see was Bosco, the red dye on his face as he lay on the ground fighting to breathe.

'Bosco…' her mind called out as the mental image came back in full vision, like she was still really there. Holding him in her arms, her mind racing with fear as she touched his face, telling him it's okay, that he wasn't hurt. She could feel his body tremble as he told her he couldn't breathe, called her name.

Faith blinked, and the images faded away, but the same feeling of fear still deep set in her chest as she looked over at the desk sergeant. Lily Moss.

"You okay Faith?" Lily asked, tilting her head to the side ever slightly as she looked back at the officer.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She cleared her throat, she gave Lily a small assuring smile and had just turned away when the sergeant called to her again. She turned around, to see Lily holding out a small yellow note. "Right," she smiled, blushing slightly as she reached for the note and turned back around again, stuffing the note deep into her pocket as she headed out the front doors.  
  


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"How do you think your test went yesterday?" Gusler asked as they drove along the West End in the squad. He looked over at Faith, and she looked back at him momentarily. He waited for a reply, but she just returned her eyes to the road, not replying. "You don't think you passed?"

"Probably not." Faith replied with a sigh, she really didn't want to talk about her test results.

"Yeah, but you studied." The young officer said, his brow creasing.

"Study doesn't mean you'll pass, Gusler. You know that."

"Yeah, but..."

"No but's." Faith said sternly, giving him a look. "Just leave it."

Gusler went to open his mouth to say something else, but she glared at him and so he didn't. Instead, he just looked out his side window and kept his mouth shut.

They patrolled their sector for more than an hour or so when they both spotted a young woman about sixteen years old standing on the footpath outside an apartment building wrapped in a grey woollen blanket, staring up at the sky. She had blonde hair, and was very pale. She also looked like she hadn't slept in a long time.

Faith pulled the squad in just a short distance from where the girl stood. They both climbed out of the squad and walked over to her.

"Miss, are you okay?" Gusler asked before Faith had a chance to. The girl just stared at the sky, the expression on her face staying the same. "Miss?" He repeated, stopping beside her. He looked up at the sky where she was looking.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" The girl asked.

Gusler dropped his gaze and looked at Faith, a questioning look on his face. She shrugged slightly. "Yeah, it is. It's pretty." He replied, still looking at Faith and shrugging himself.

The girl smiled, finally lower her eyes to look at him. He turned back to her, greeted with a warm smile. "It's a lot different now, though. The sky." She said, her voice staying the same. Her tone sad, almost as though she was fighting with every fibre of her soul not to cry.

"Why's that?" He asked back.

"It's sad, somehow. Since the attacks."

"It was a very sad day." The young officer replied. "A lot of people got hurt."

"A lot of people died." She said, blinking once. A lone tear flowed from the corner of her left eye.

"A lot of my colleagues." Gusler swallowed. "Friends."

The girl nodded. "My dad. Mother. They both worked in the second tower."

"I'm sorry." He said, swallowing again. "That must have been hard."

She nodded. "Still is. But..." a small smile appeared on the corner of her lips. "The sky, when I look up there...I remember all the good times we shared."

He nodded, not saying anything else. He didn't know what else to say.

"Do you need anything..." Faith asked, pausing.

"Josie."

"Josie...is there anything we can get you? Help with?" Josie looked over at her, smiling as she shook her head.

"I have everything I need. I'm just remembering."

"This neighbourhood's not very safe," Gusler's high frequency caring tone came through. "Maybe you should go inside?"

The girl shrugged, shaking her head. "Maybe later." She replied, looking at them both a moment longer before pulling the blanket tighter around herself and gazing up at the sky again.

Faith and Gusler exchanged a look, and slowly headed back to the squad.

"Officer Yokas..." Josie said. Both officers turned turn face her. "Has anything ever happened, but you couldn't explain why? Not like a bad thing, but something really good in your life that you knew was part of a bigger plan?"

Instantly, Faith looked at Gusler, then back to the girl. Flashes to the kiss she and Bosco had shared the night before going through her mind. "Yeah."

"Well, I believe it's God's way of redirecting your life." She smiled, moving the blanket a little as she rested her hand on her round stomach. Faith nodded slightly, looking at Josie a while longer as she looked back up at the sky. She started to hum a tune, smile on her face.

Faith turned around, walking back to the squad with Gusler. As they climbed back in, she couldn't help look back at Josie and think about what she had said. _Not like a bad thing, but something really good in your life that you knew was part of a bigger plan._

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Bosco hadn't slept the previous night. He'd lain awake all night, unable to stop thinking about Faith, and about what had happened between them. He'd spent the morning in the workout room of the station house, then had gone to his 'mandatory counseling' session with Sully's friend. 

Not that he had brought up what was really on his mind at that point. 

The guy had even asked about his partner and Bosco had managed to play it cool. He assured the guy that he had no problems with Faith--they worked great together. Which for the most part, was the truth. 

Except this past year, they'd both been keeping secrets--big secrets--from each other. It had nearly ruined them. Their friendship, their partnership--had been strained for awhile now. In a lot of cases like that, he knew most officers would just request to be assigned a new partner permanently. But no way was he about to do that. 

Why not? the voice asked him.

Because we've worked together for years. She's my friend and I care about her. 

She's the only one who'll put up with your b.s., the voice said. 

That too, he thought, finally agreeing with the voice. 

Bosco wondered why she did put up with his crap sometimes. Sure, he got on her nerves occasionally--once in awhile he even did it on purpose--but she'd always been there for him, no matter what. 

He leaned his head back against the sofa, wishing he had all the answers, wishing he understood Faith Yokas even *half* as well as she seemed to understand him. 

I have to talk to her, he thought with resolve. I have to go see her. 

Bosco glanced at the clock on the wall. It was 10:30 p.m. If he left right now, he'd hopefully be able to catch her as her shift at work ended. 

He stood up abruptly, feeling determined, but a bit nervous at the same time. He grabbed his car keys and headed for the door.   
  


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Faith yawned as she closed her locker at the end of shift that night. It was just after eleven and she felt like just going home and falling into a deep state of unconscious for the next sixteen hours.

She just sat down on the bench to tie her shoelaces when Sully came in. _Oh great_, she sighed. He had that 'dead-set' look on his face that meant she was in for some kind of lecture. _Not now, not tonight, I just want to go home._

"I'm glad I caught you." Sully said, walking directly to his locker and after successfully opening the lock, he opened it.

"Oh?" Faith mused, she was kind of curious why he wanted to talk to her. She just hoped it wasn't another 'he needs help, Faith...he's not right up here' conversation. She could do without one of those.

"Yeah, I was hoping to talk to you this morning, but you went by faster than I had time to call you back."

"Oh, sorry, I had things on my mind." Faith replied, looking over at him. He was sitting on the bench in front of his locker now. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Well," he looked over at her. "I wanted to apologise."

"For what?" But she already had a gut instinct as to what.

"Last night. I was just worried, that you'd ruin your chances of being Sergeant by trying to help Bosco."

"He's my partner, Sully. We're meant to help each other. Sergeants Exam or not." She stated, matter-of-factly. "That's what partners are for."

"I know," he nodded. "I just didn't want you passing up your test. He deliberately disobeyed orders, then assaulted a suspect. I don't want to see him dragging you down."

Faith looked away, rolling her eyes. It was just like talking to Fred. "He's a good cop Sully, I'm not going to stand back and let him fall." She turned to him again, frown on her face. "I don't turn my back on my friends. And I won't." She stood up angrily and grabbed her bag before heading toward the doors.

Once outside of the locker room, Faith let out a sigh. She was torn, torn between going back in there and apologising for her outburst, or letting Sully stew in thought. She wasn't sorry for what she said, wasn't about to take it back. She had meant every damned word.

She checked the watch on her wrist, and resolved to the fact it was time to head home. She walked along the corridor and found her way to the main entrance, and was about to head outside when Lily called out to her. "Yeah?" She asked, turning to the desk sergeant.

"Your husband rang again, wondered why you hadn't answered the message he left you this afternoon."

"Message?" Faith asked, completely forgetting about the note Lily had handed her before she and Gusler went out on patrol.

"He was wondering if you were feeling any better, and wanted you to call him and let him know how you were doing."

"Oh." Faith replied, she thanked Lily, and told her she'd catch up with Fred when she got home. She turned back around and headed out the front doors.

She had just stepped outside when she was greeted with a ferocious downpour. _Damn, I should have brought my thick jacket. _She pulled the collar of the jacket she was wearing up to her face and held it closed. She was going to be completely drenched by the time she got home, and would probably end up with some kind of flu by the time her next shift rolled around.

Faith walked fast across to the other side of the road when she heard her name being called. She swung around, and instantly the hand she had gripping onto her jacket dropped a little and she stood staring wordlessly across the street, the rain pounding hard onto the ground, sending mists of steam off the hot road as the rain cooled it.

Standing on the opposite side of the road out front of the precinct was Bosco. He was as equally drenched as she. She couldn't read the expression on his face, but knew that it had something to do with last night. _Last night, _she thought, memories flashing before her again as she watched him walk across the street, over to her.

"Hey." He said, swallowing.

"Hey yourself." Faith replied.

Awww.....don't you hate it when stories end like that? :D


	2. Too Many Voices

****

Title: Inside, Everyone's Hiding – 'Too Many Voices'  
**Author:** Demelza  
**Email:** demelza81@yahoo.co.nz_  
_**Disclaimer:** The characters don't belong to me. They belong to Edward Allen Bernero and John Wells and a bunch of other people that I've never met before. Please don't sue. The characters of Josie and Ashley belong to me.  
**Rating:** PG-13, for Angst, a few cuss words and adult themes.  
**Spoilers:** Up to and including 'Falling'.  
**Category:** Bosco and Faith angst, Gusler fan fic.  
**Summary: **Gusler's annoyed at Bosco and Faith's continuous bickering, so he decides it's time they sorted it out.  
**A/N:** Picks up one and a half weeks after the first part of 'Inside, Everyone's Hiding'. I ended the other story with everyone wondering what happened next between Bosco and Faith...this story tells you what, but almost only from Gusler's pov. Oh yeah, another story where the F-word isn't used, but this time by F-word I mean F**d **_as well as_** F**k. :P   
**Dedication:** For Angie, Bee, and CCA, and everyone else for all their wonderful feedback, you all know who you are ;)

][ ][ ][

A young girl is running across a large field of grass in Central Park. The sound of two hearts pounding echo beat-after-beat. Running behind her is a young boy with dark hair. Young cousins, as well as best friends, she turns back to him laughing. 'You'll never catch me Steve!' her young voice hollers. Laughter fills the air from both children when suddenly everything fades and the sound of wailing sirens blanket the air with a dark fear. 

Everything flashes at once, lots of shouting and misunderstood words. Eight year old Steve stands alone in the dark hallway, dressed in light blue pyjamas clutching a brown teddy bear to his chest. His face is filled with fear, tears roll down his cheeks as he sees a gurney being wheeled from the apartment next door. Her name is caught in his throat as he sees the paramedics do heart compressions on her fragile chest. 'Bad asthma attack' one paramedic says. 'She probably won't make it' the other adds.

A blank stare from his heartbroken aunt, and then suddenly a loud thud and Steve Gusler's eyes open wide. His heart is pounding, and all he knows is he's lying flat on his stomach, neck hurting from the uncomfortable way he'd simply 'crashed' on the floor at two o'clock earlier that morning.

Steve moaned, brining his left arm out from under him and up in front of his face. The face on the watch read quarter to three. 

"Aw crap," he mumbled. He was going to be late for his shift.

~

Steve arrived at work in record time with only a minute to spare as he hurriedly changed into his uniform and made his way to roll call. Sergeant Christopher was briefing everyone to be on the watch out for Freddie Jameson, an escaped convict with seven assault charges. "Be alert people, we want to catch this guy." The Sergeant said.

Steve went over and sat down in the only spare seat beside Officer Faith Yokas, his temporary partner for the last little while. He wondered why she and her real partner, Maurice Boscorelli, better known as Bosco, still weren't working together yet. There was a lot of tension between them, hell he'd been witness to four major arguments in the last week and a half since the night Faith had taken her sergeants exam. _Please partner me with someone else, please, please… _he begged inwardly, as much as he loved working with Faith, listening to her bitch about Bosco one more time would drive him up the wall.

"Boscorelli and Sullivan, you'll take sector seven. Yokas and Gusler, sector nine."

"Aw crap." He groaned, instantly receiving a whack in the arm from Faith.

"Be lucky you're working with me and not Bosco or some other officer." She said to him in a low voice.

__

Oh yeah, not to forget the mini lecture. He rolled his eyes.

Sergeant Christopher dismissed them all and Steve quickly rose to his feet, heading straight out of there to sign-out his radio.

He was out waiting in the car within a few minutes later, it seemed like ages before he saw Faith come out of the precinct, talking to Bosco. Just by their body language alone he could tell they were having another argument. Faith shouted something to Bosco that he could barely hear and stormed off, headed directly for their car, while Bosco went over to his and John Sullivan's car, mumbling something under his breath.

Steve swallowed as the driver's side door opened and Faith climbed in, sighing deeply. "Everything okay?" He asked nonchalantly.

She looked at him, frown etched across her face. "Why ask if you don't mean it?" She asked abruptly, starting the car but still looking at him, waiting for his reply.

"Hey, I asked, didn't I?" He said back, shaking his head as he looked out the side window.

"What, we're doing Bosco impersonations now?" She asked angrily. He sighed, rolling his eyes. "What the hell is your problem this week, Steve?"

He sighed, hearing the frustration in her tone. He turned back to her. "You and Bosco are always fighting! And then you get in the car and you bitch about him through the entire shift!" He said fast, not wanting to let her get a word in until he'd finished.

"What?"

He cleared his throat a little. "If it's not how he fills in a report wrong, it's how he's a manic driver. And, if it's not that, you're bitching about his 'attitude' and his disrespect for the Badge! Thing is, I can totally understand that you're pissed at him, that's why I'm here working with you and he's partnered with Sullivan. But really...you gotta bitch about him through the entire shift?"

Faith groaned, shaking her head. "Is that what this is about?"

"You're not the only one with problems! Okay? You and Bosco...look, I don't know what the hell is up with you two, but you really gotta stop dragging me into it. I could care less. I have my own problems, I don't need yours on top of it!"

The frown on Faith's face changed to something of shock and realisation. She looked out the windscreen, letting out a breath.

"I'm sorry, I love working with you, ma'am. Hell, outta you and Bosco, I'd rather work with you. But if you keep talking about him, I swear to God I'll go mad."

Steve looked at her a moment longer, she just stared back at him in shock. He looked out his side window. He hated what he'd done, but all this shit with bitching about Bosco was enough to make any sane person crazy. All he wanted was a normal shift with no 'Bosco this, Bosco that'. He closed his eyes momentarily and opened them again, sighing. "I'm sorry."

"No, you're right." Faith replied, he looked at her and she shrugged slightly. "I've been inconsiderate, I'm the one who should be sorry. I dumped my problems on you, and, well that wasn't very fair."

Steve let out a breath. "I don't mind that you talk about him, just, I don't understand what's going on between you that you're fighting like this." He said, watching the expression on her face change as she looked out the windscreen.

"Nothing is..." she swallowed, looking directly at him. "It'll pass."

"I hope so." He replied, looking out the window again as Faith put the car in gear and pulled out onto the road. They were driving along the road when he swore he heard her utter the words 'I hope so, too'.  


][ ][ ][

The next two hours of their shift went by slowly, neither officer said a word as they patrolled their sector.

"We should call in for a short break." Faith said, looking at Steve for a moment before pulling the car into a car park outside his favourite Diner.

He made the call into Central to inform them of their break before they both climbed out of the car and went into the Diner. Faith chose a booth nearest the window to keep an eye on the car while Steve went up and ordered a burrito and packet of fries each for them both. He brought them back over and sat down opposite her.

"Thanks." She said.

Steve smiled, picking up a fry and eating it. "Mmm, these are great."

Faith nodded, taking a bite of her burrito. "So..." she begun, waiting until she'd finished the mouthful of food she had before continuing. "Is everything okay with you?"

He looked at her, frozen for a split few seconds. He swallowed, nodding. "Yeah, everything's fine."

"Well, in the car, you said...you had your own problems...?"

"Oh." Steve replied, he smiled, shaking his head. "I was just saying that to get you to shut up," he grinned, getting a chuckle from Faith.

"You sure?" She asked, but didn't give him a chance to reply before she continued, "Because, the last couple of weeks since the shooting, you've been kind of quiet."

"Yeah. I'm fine. Really."

Faith nodded, but he could tell she didn't believe him.

He ate a few fries, then shrugged slightly. "Dreams," he uttered, swallowing the food in his mouth.

"Dreams?" She asked, giving him her full attention. "About that day?"

"No. It's uh, when I was eight, my cousin...Ashley...she uh, she died."

Faith tilted her head to the left slightly and a sympathetic frown appeared on her face. "Oh geez, I'm so sorry, Steve."

"Me too." He nodded, eating another fry. "My aunt, she blamed me...see, Ashley and I, we'd spent a few hours down at Central Park that afternoon, just running around. But, I never knew..." He swallowed hard, almost choking on the lump that was rising in his throat. "That she uh, that she had real bad Asthma. She just thought she was puffed from over exerting herself, I thought so too, but...it didn't clear up, she just got worse. A few hours' later paramedics were called. She..." he swallowed again. "Died. They couldn't revive her."

"I'm so sorry." Faith repeated. "I had no idea."

Steve looked up at his superior officer, a sole tear streamed down her face, and he was a little surprised when she made no effort to wipe it away. "It's the way the cookie crumbles, you know?" He said to her. "Life's a bitch, nothing you can do to change the past."

"No," she replied, "There isn't."

"It ah, happened thirteen years ago last Saturday."

There was a silent moment. "That's when we went by the cemetery?" Faith asked back.

He nodded, swallowing.

~

__

It took Steve every part of him that he could just to walk over to Ashley's tombstone where he found her mother and father standing there, crying still at the loss of their only child. He swallowed hard and stopped a few feet away. He hadn't seen them since the day of her funeral. 

His Aunt cried more, turning to him with hurt and angered eyes. "Get away!" She shouted.

Steve swallowed again, "I-I just came to see her." He said, his voice trembling as he fought the tears he was trying not to shed.

"Isn't it bad enough you killed her!?" His uncle asked, holding his wife tight in his arms. "We don't want you here, now leave!"

"She was my best friend!" Steve said to him in a firm voice, yet so unable to hold back the tears anymore as they rolled down his face. "I loved her."

"You didn't love her, you murdered her!" His Aunt cried. "If you loved her, you wouldn't have made her go to that stupid park with you!"

"I did love her! I loved her enough to give her the best afternoon of her life! That's what she told me, she told me when we walked home that afternoon that she was sick of being trapped inside and not being able to live a fun filled life. But you don't know that, you never listened to her! So don't you *dare* tell me I didn't love her! Because I did, I loved Ashley with all my heart. She was the best friend I ever had!"

As the words escaped his lips, he felt a release of the weights on his shoulder at never being able to tell them what Ashley had told him that fateful day. "If you loved her," he started again, "You would come here every second weekend, through wind, rain or snow and place flowers by her tomb, say a prayer for her. But you don't! The only day you come is when the guilt hits you the most. On her Birthday, at Christmas...and the day she died."

Steve stepped backwards, shaking his head at them. "But even then, you only come because you have to, not because you want to." He didn't say another word, just stepped over to Ashley's tombstone and removed a single purple Pansy from his jacket pocket, her favourite flower, and placed it on top of it.

][ ][ ][

No sooner after they had finished their fifteen minute break, Steve and Faith were called to a motor vehicle accident up on Main, assisting 55-Charlie. The first thing that came into Steve's mind was 'Oh please don't let Bosco and Yokas fight again.' If they had one more pathetic argument like the other day, he swore he wouldn't be responsible for his actions.

__

"You ate the last bagel?" Bosco asked, making Steve look up from the desk where he and Faith were working at. Bosco stood there with an empty bagel carton in his hand, Sully was at his side trying to get him to just leave it alone. "Faith!?" Bosco repeated, his voice louder, his tone angry.

Faith looked up at him, shaking her head. "What? No, I didn't," she replied defensively.

Steve swallowed hard as Bosco dumped the box on the report Faith was working on. Oh hell no, _were the first words to jump into his mind._

Faith dropped the pen in her hand and her eyes met Steve's, even he could tell just by the way she set her jaw and let out a long breath that she was pissed off. He swallowed again as she stood up, pushing the chair back as she did so. She turned to Bosco, picking up the box and shoving it back at him. "You *had* to do that?" She asked, her voice calm and straight.

"Well, did you have to eat the last bagel?" Bosco asked back.

"I didn't eat the last damn bagel, Bosco!" Faith replied with anger at his accusation.

"Yeah, sure you didn't." He replied in mock belief. He shoved the box back in Faith's arms which set her off to shove it back into his arms. "If you're gonna eat the last bagel, you can keep the damn box!" Bosco's voice rose, he tossed the box onto Faith's report again.

Steve couldn't believe his eyes. It was like watching seven year old girls fighting over the new girl in the class. He shook his head, about to say something when he caught glimpse of Sully shaking his head at him. Sully's right, _he thought. If they were going to have a fight, it was wise to not get into the middle of it. He learnt that two days earlier when they were having a fight over incorrect details on a report they were filling out together from an old case they were closing up._

Faith's eyes didn't even shift to the dust and crumbs that were now spilled over her almost finished report. "You probably ate it yourself." She remarked, keeping her ground as Bosco angrily let out a groan.

"I did not eat it!"

"Probably did!"

"Well, I'm telling you I didn't!"

"And neither did I!"

"You did too!"

"I did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did!"

"Didn't!"

There was an ear-piercing whistle and all four officers looked behind Sully. Sergeant Christopher was standing there, almost half-eaten bagel in his hand. "Just what the hell is going on here?!" He demanded, looking between Bosco and Faith.

Seeing what was in his hand, Faith looked back at Bosco, huffing slightly. "And you accused me of eating the last bagel?" She asked, shaking her head. He looked over at her, an expression on his face that read something of embarrassment and shock. "Next time get your facts right before you start accusing me of anything, jerk." She said and picked up her report. She very quickly dusted it off and shoved past Bosco and Sergeant Christopher.

Faith pulled the car up by the footpath four cars back from the MVA, and right up behind 55-Charlie's squad car. Steve was the first out of the car and was instantly called over by Sully who needed help questioning witnesses. Faith, on the other hand, went to give Bosco a hand keeping watchers-by out of Doc and Carlos' way as they worked on the sole injured driver in the two-car smash-up.

While Doc and Carlos did their thing, also waiting for FDNY to arrive with the Jaws of Life, Steve worriedly looked over at Faith and Bosco. He could see them give each other glares and just by watching their faces he could tell they were sniping at each other again.

"I don't know why she bothers." Sully grumbled, getting his attention a few minutes later. Sully dismissed the last witness and walked over to Steve, stopping beside him. "I heard she failed her sergeant's exam." The older officer said, bitterness in his tone. "And I bet it's all because of that no hopper partner of hers. She probably felt some stupid moral responsibility to always be there holding his bloody hand that she deliberately failed."

Steve looked sideways at him, somewhat disgusted by his comments. "They're partners...they've sworn to be there for each other."

"Yeah. But watching each others backs, not carrying the other's load every working day. I personally hope to see him permanently suspended, or at the very least transferred out of here."

"Geez, you really have it in for him."

Sully looked at him, no expression on his face. "No, I don't. I just don't like to see good cops being dragged down by their partner's."

Steve just shook his head. He went to comment back when those five words of relief filled the air. "It's open! Let's move him!" Doc shouted, the Fire Department had by now arrived and cut the man free from his Mazda Prelude. Doc and Carlos got the man out and strapped him to the gurney before wheeling him to the ambulance, and then loaded him inside. Doc was in the back with the man who had sustained serious head and back injuries, while Carlos was running to the driver's side of the bus when Doc called the younger paramedic to the back of the bus to help him with the man. The man was going into cardiac arrest and needed serious attention from both paramedics.

"We need a driver, a-sap!" Carlos called out in Steve and Sully's direction.

"I'll do it!" Steve replied without hesitation. Sully grabbed him by the arm to stop him, but he pulled free from his grip. "I used to drive my old man's delivery truck, I can do it." He said, not even stopping as he raced to the ambulance.

Within seconds the scream of the sirens filled the air and the ambulance was on its way.

"Well I never." Bosco remarked quietly to himself.

Sully walked over to Bosco and Faith, almost every passer-by having left or just started to walk away by now. "The driver of the other vehicle is a little shaken, I'll take him down to the hospital for a check over, then I'll take him to the house." The older officer informed them both, getting their attention. "You two continue patrolling sector nine, Gusler and I will take sector seven when we're done at the hospital."

"What?" Bosco and Faith both replied, Bosco shook his head.

Sully merely shook his head and walked away, leaving the two of them standing there.

There was a painfully silent minute between Bosco and Faith before either of them said or did anything. "I'll drive." Bosco said, not leaving Faith half a chance to protest or challenge his demand as he walked over to the squad car and climbed in the driver's side. She was sitting in the passenger seat a moment later and nothing else was said between them as Bosco moved the squad.

~

"You ever thought of becoming a paramedic?" Steve heard Carlos ask as the paramedic walked over to where he stood by the coffee machine in the break room.

He looked over at Carlos, shrugging. "Not really. Always wanted to be a cop."

"With driving like that, if being a cop doesn't work out, you should really consider being a med. We can always use good driving like that. Isn't that right, Doc?" He asked as the door opened and the older paramedic walked in.

"What's that?" Doc asked back, rubbing his neck as he stepped into the room.

"We could always use good drivers for the buses."

"Oh. Yeah, but it takes more than speedy driving to become a paramedic," he replied, looking over at Steve, who was sipping the hot coffee he had just poured for himself. "Sully's out there, says he'll be ready to roll in five minutes."

"Thanks," Steve replied.

"Sure." Doc said, moving his gaze to Carlos who had just placed small change into the small basket for the drink he had just gotten for himself. "You ready?"

"As ever." Carlos mumbled as he brought the small foam cup to his lips and took a mouthful of his drink. "Catch ya later Gusler. Great driving." He smiled, walking past Doc, who also thanked Steve for helping them on the run.

"Glad to help," he replied, watching as Doc then turned and left, leaving him standing there alone. He had almost half finished his coffee when the door to the room opened again and Sully appeared in the doorway.

"You ready?"

"Yep," Steve replied, quickly drinking as much of the drink as he could before tipping the rest down the basin against the wall and tossing the foam cup in the trash can. "Where's Bosco and Yokas?"

"I made them take sector nine together. We'll swap back after dinner."

"Okay."

][ ][ ][

As time rolled by and the hands on Steve's watch read quarter past seven, Sully called 55-David over the radio and had them meet them at the same small diner Steve and Faith had gone to earlier in their shift. They arrived and Sully put the car in park before both officer's climbed out and headed inside, waiting for Faith and Bosco to arrive.

They were waiting a quarter of an hour before the two officers pulled up outside and came in, joining Steve and Sully at the booth just opposite the main counter.

"You guys ready to order now?" The diner owner walked over and asked, pencil and notepad in her hand, ready to take their orders.

"Just the usual, thanks Deb," Steve replied, handing her his menu. Faith said the same, and Sully asked for a beef club sandwich with a side of fries. 

"I'll just have whatever she's having," Bosco said motioning with his thumb over to Faith who sat to his right and not even looking at his menu.

The diner owner scribbled down their orders, "Be right back then," she said, taking all the menus and walking to the back of the diner and handing the cook the order.

The table was suddenly quiet and nothing more was said until the food was ready almost ten minutes later. Deb passed out the plates and also brought over a glass of orange juice for each of them. "It's on the house," she said just as Sully went to protest about having not ordered it.

As Deb walked away again, that's when the salt and ketchup was passed around the table. Steve looked around the table; everyone had started to eat now and were enjoying the hot meals they had been given. Faith and Bosco were eating the same dish of steak, eggs, bacon and mashed potatoes and gravy, while Sully gratefully ate his beef sandwich and fries, which he allowed everyone to have a few of.

He smiled inwardly as he watched them all, especially Faith and Bosco. It was pleasing to be around them when they weren't trying to bite each other's head off all the time. Happy, he started on his hot rice pudding and fresh fruit salad.

"So, how's the guy from the accident?" Faith asked Steve between mouthfuls.

"Critical condition. Sully and I called by Mercy on the way over here, they don't think he'll make it."

She didn't respond, just shook her head sadly at the news.

Everyone fell silent again, when the bell above the diner door rung and they all looked in that direction. A woman walked in, looking around her when her eyes settled on the four officers.

"Are you all right there ma'am?" Sully asked, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

"Yes." The woman replied, her voice a near whisper as her eyes settled on Steve, sending feelings of unease through both himself and Faith, who, aside from Steve, was the only other person there who knew who she was. "Why are you doing this?" She asked, her voice shaking.

"Doing what?" Steve asked before any of the others could.

"Taking this place. It was Ashley's favourite diner, and you're stealing it from her memories." She said, breathless as she tried to control her tears. "Isn't it enough that you stole her from us? But you have to steal all her precious memories too?"

Faith set her utensils down, standing up to face the woman. "Ma'am, you might like to calm down, please."

"No!" The woman shouted back with anger fuelling her tone. "He stole my baby from me, I will not calm down!"

"Aunt Morgan, please." Steve pleaded, his own voice trembling as he fought off the tears.

"No," she repeated, lowering her voice as her lips quivered. Tears rolled down her face and she angrily wiped them away. "I will not let you steal her from me any more!"

"Just stop it!" He shouted back, "You're destroying her memory by blaming me, by not accepting the fact that what happened was no one's fault!"

Morgan Gusler's eyes narrowed and she shook her head again. "No. No! It's your fault that she's dead. It's your fault that I can't give her a kiss goodnight and tuck her in! You have taken what was precious to me, to Ashley, and butchered it into your own selfishness! And how dare you, you have no rights!"

He couldn't hold in the tears any more, and they rolled down his face uncontrollably. "Just stop it! Please!" He begged, wiping the tears from his cheeks. "Just stop it!"

Faith looked at her colleague, sorrow and sympathy for him flooding over her. She turned back to his Aunt, "We know you're hurting, but ma'am, I think you should leave."

"Don't you tell me what to do!" She slapped Faith hard across the face, causing Bosco to stand up defensively at her side, glaring at the other woman.

Faith rubbed her face, stopping Bosco from moving forward when he went to. She let out a to refrain from doing or saying anything she would later regret herself.

"If you don't leave right now, ma'am, I'll place you under arrest for assaulting an officer," Bosco said at Faith's side in a warning tone. "You really don't want that on your record."

Morgan stared over at Steve. "This isn't over." She told him with a promising anger before turning and leaving out the same door she had came in through.

Faith watched the woman leave, and slowly turned to Bosco, giving him a thankful smile, before she sat back down again.

As Bosco sat down in his seat again, Steve let out a long sigh, resting his head in his hands as he leant forward over the table. "She's right, it is all my fault."

"Why, what'd you do?" Bosco asked, but his tone was snide, so Faith whacked him in the arm. He quickly apologised for his tone and re asked.  
"My cousin, when we were eight, she ah, she died...from a bad asthma attack." Steve replied, his eyes focusing on the table, though he knew all eyes were on him.

"Oh." Was all Bosco replied, he didn't say anything else, he didn't know what to say.

"That's not your fault, Steve," Faith reinforced, "It's no one's fault."

He let out a sigh. "Isn't it my fault? I was the one that took her to that stupid park to start with."

"Didn't you yourself say that she told you it was the best day of her life?" Faith gently asked, placing her hand over his.

Steve sniffed, a frown still on his face. Not wanting to reply, he stood up and walked out of the diner.

Frowning herself, Faith looked over at Sully and then to Bosco, neither looked at her, just kept their faces buried in their food. She let out a sigh, and stood up. "Great way to care about your colleagues," she muttered as she left.

At that moment, Bosco stood up, angered. "How the hell are we supposed to react, Faith?" He snapped.

"Oh no, not again," Sully muttered, though neither could hear him.

][ ][ ][

Steve sat against the engine block of the RMP, tears streamed down his face, but he didn't care. Didn't care for the stares from the people as they walked past, didn't care for the fact he was letting his emotions be free for all the world to see. He just didn't care. He sat out there for what seemed like ages, when the doors to the diner opened and Bosco and Faith walked out, fighting again like usual. _Why can't they just give it a break, _he quietly asked. He swallowed, pushing himself off the front of the car as they approached, shortly followed by Sully who wore a disgruntled look on his face.

"Would you just give it a break, Faith!" Bosco shouted.

"No, you're an insensitive ass, Boz!" Faith replied.

Steve rolled his eyes. "Would you two just give it a break!" He shouted, both officers stopped and looked directly at him. Faith went to say something when he put up his hand. "No! I don't want to hear it, ma'am. You two need to grow up and sort out whatever problems you have with each other, because I'm sick of it! All right!?"

"Steve..." Faith said, but he pushed past her and went over to Sully's squad car. She shot Bosco a glare and whacked him in the arm.

Hearing Bosco wince, Steve turned back around, staring at them both. "You're like little children! Why don't you two just kiss and make up, and quit acting like little babies!" He shouted, feeling bad as he saw the looks on both their faces. But he shook that off and headed over to the squad car and climbed inside.

][ ][ ][

As the warm rays of sunlight touched the bare skin of her back through the window, Faith stretched and yawned, sighing contentedly as she snuggled up next to the warm body beside her.

"You know," she began softly. "I'm pretty sure this wasn't what Gusler meant."

"Yeah, me either," Bosco replied, he lifted smiled over at Faith where they lay face to face. "But, I'm not complaining."

She smiled back. "No, you wouldn't." She replied.

][ ][ ][

****

6 weeks and 3 days later

"Central to 55-Charlie and 55-David, MVA on South Hue Street, officers' involved."

Sully and Davis exchanged grim looks. "10-4, Central, 55-Charlie responding," Davis called back in his radio. Both officers' still held a grim look as they waited for 55-David's call back. There was none.

Without another word said between them, Sully put the car into drive and pulled out onto the street, doing a complete U-turn as he drove South along the road until he was seven roads down and pulled left along 86th Street.

"Isn't South Hue where Boscorelli and Yokas were patrolling?" Sully asked, looking over at Davis for a moment before turning his gaze back to the road.

"That's what I thought...wait, you don't think...no, because Central called in 55-David." Davis replied, his brow creased in thought as Sully turned right up ahead and they came to the one sight both officers thought they'd never see.

55-David's squad car was rammed into the back end of a garbage disposal truck, the front windshield was shattered and both officers' were unconscious. At least, Davis inwardly prayed that's what they were.

Sully pulled the squad car to a stop a short distance away; both officers' quickly climbed out and rushed over to the car.

"Bosco! Yokas!" Davis shouted, getting no response from either of the two. A cold shiver went over him as he saw the blood trickling down both of the officers' face; a rusted sheet of twisted metal with a point on it halfway through the front of the squad in front of Yokas. He shifted his gaze to her jacket and saw a pool of blood on the right side of her stomach. "Oh my god..." He whispered, mixtures of emotions and anger stuck in his chest as he stood back up and a sole tear streamed down his face. He looked over at Sully, no words being exchanged as they heard the wailing sirens from the Ambulance and Fire engine just two blocks away.

Continued in the Next Installment

__

'While the lives of his colleagues lie in the balance, Davis ponders his own life and actions he's taken and decides to take the next step in his relationship with Alex. The how's and why of the accident plague everyone's mind, until the true reason behind it is revealed and a shock arrest is made by the Detectives investigating the incident.'


End file.
